Koganezaki: A Haven For Divers and Campers

Japan has plenty of places to enjoy the ocean during summer, and this year, my husband and I decided to spend part of our Obon holiday in Koganezaki, Izu. I had been practicing freediving in a swimming pool for some time, but I had never actually tried doing it in the open ocean. We thought this would be a good opportunity to finally experience it, while also trying something else I had never done before: camping.

Koganezaki is located in Nishiizu, Shizuoka Prefecture, and getting there from Chiba was quite a journey for us. It took us around five hours using trains and buses, but the area was very different from what we were used to seeing around Tokyo and Chiba. It was quiet, surrounded by mountains and the ocean, and there were not many people around when we visited.

Getting to Koganezaki

 

For us, one of the biggest challenges was transportation. We traveled entirely by public transportation from Chiba, so the whole journey took around five hours and required several trains and buses. The buses were on time when we visited, but they do not come as frequently as transportation around Tokyo, so checking the schedule beforehand is important.

If you have a car, traveling around the area would be much more convenient. Both the dive center and the campsite have parking available, and having a car would also make it easier to buy food and other supplies before camping.

Still, it is possible to visit without one. You just need to plan a little more carefully.

Diving at Koganezaki

 

We booked our experience at Koganezaki Dive Center online only a couple of days before our trip. This was during Obon, so I was actually surprised that we were still able to make a reservation.

The dive center provides rental equipment, so you do not necessarily have to own anything beforehand. Our wetsuits, fins, masks, snorkels, and the other equipment we needed were prepared for us. We only had to bring swimsuits to wear underneath our wetsuits, along with our towels and other personal items.

There are also showers, changing facilities, and a small area where you can sit and rest. We were able to order bento there as well, which turned out to be very helpful considering how difficult it was to find food around Koganezaki later.

Before going into the water, we had a short snorkeling lesson with two staff members. They explained how to use the equipment, what we could expect to see in the water, and some of the things we needed to be careful of. After that, we went into the ocean with them before eventually being able to explore more on our own.

At first, I was wearing a life vest, but I found it quite difficult to dive underwater while wearing it. Once I was comfortable enough, I had it removed and went back into the water. It was definitely different from practicing in a swimming pool, and the wet suit made it a lot harder since it was very buoyant was designed to keep us afloat.

There were plenty of fish around us, and being able to actually dive down and look at everything underwater made the experience much more interesting. Since it was my first time doing this in the ocean, I was nervous at first, but I eventually became more comfortable. We also brought our own phones and were able to take lots of videos and photos documenting our first time diving and snorkeling in Izu.

The staff also took photos of us while we were in the water and sent them to us afterward. This was included in our experience which we had paid for, and it was nice because we were able to have underwater photos without worrying about taking all of them ourselves.

The snorkeling lesson lasted around 30 minutes and after that, we were allowed to go swimming by ourselves without the life vests on for another hour. The view under the water was absolutely breathtaking and seeing the place full teeming with life really reinforced my love for diving and anything related to water or the ocean.

Camping at Koganezaki

 

After diving, we walked to Camp Koganezaki, which was around 20 minutes away with all of our belongings and with our hair still damp.

The campsite has several different areas depending on where you want to stay. Area A is closest to the ocean, while Areas B and C are located higher up. We stayed in Area B, which gave us a nice view of the sea and the cliffs below.

We rented a tent for two people as well as a grill. However, one important thing to know is that renting a tent does not mean that sleeping bags are included. You will still need to bring your own however, it did include thick padding that we can place on the floor of the tent.

Luckily, we had already bought inexpensive sleeping bags from Daiso. We also bought small camping chairs, lamps, and several other things there before our trip.

The campsite itself had most of the basic facilities we needed. There were toilets, paid showers, places to dispose of garbage, and covered areas where you could sit and eat. There are also cottages available for people who would like to stay in the area but do not necessarily want to sleep in a tent.

 

Since this was my first time camping, even putting up the tent was part of the experience. It was also quite windy near the coast, which made things a little more challenging.

Food Was Our Biggest Problem

 

One thing I would definitely do differently next time is bring much more food.

There really was not much around us.

There were a few restaurants in the area, but they were closed when we visited. There was also a supermarket, but unfortunately, that was closed as well. I am not sure if this was because we visited during Obon, but the entire area was extremely quiet. We barely saw people walking around, and many of the houses had their lights off at night.

The closest place where we could reliably buy food was a 7-Eleven, and getting there required around a 20 to 30-minute walk.

This was probably our biggest mistake because we had rented a grill but did not bring any meat or food to actually cook. The campsite owner said he usually provides supplies of meat to grill, but when we visited, there was not much left due to the influx of customers in Obon.

If you are planning to camp here, especially during Obon, I would recommend buying your food before traveling to Koganezaki. If you are bringing meat or other items that need to stay cold, an insulated bag or cooler would also be very useful.

Things I Recommend Bringing on Your Koganezaki Trip

 

Aside from food, there are a few things that I was glad we brought or wished we had prepared better.

• Sunscreen and insect repellent: Both are important, especially if you are camping during summer. You will be spending a lot of time outdoors, so we made sure to have both with us.
• Drinking water: Bring plenty of water, especially during the hotter months. There are not many places nearby where you can easily buy drinks and supplies.
• Towels, toiletries, and a change of clothes: These are especially useful if you plan to go swimming or diving before heading to the campsite.
• Medicine: Bring any medicine you normally need. We both ended up getting migraines during the trip, so I was very glad that we had medicine with us.
• Sleeping bag: The rental tent came with thick padding for the floor, but sleeping bags were not included. We bought inexpensive ones from Daiso before our trip.
• Small camping chairs: Our little Daiso chairs ended up being surprisingly useful and made sitting around outside the tent much more comfortable.
• Picnic mat: We placed ours outside the tent so we had somewhere clean to sit, relax, and put some of our things.
• Lamps: It gets very dark at the campsite at night. We brought around three small lamps from Daiso, and we definitely needed them.
• Power banks: Charging our phones was not easy while camping, so fully charged power banks were incredibly useful, especially since we were taking lots of photos and videos.
• Waterproof phone case: If you want to take your phone into the water, a waterproof case is worth bringing. We bought ours from Daiso and used it while snorkeling.
• Handheld fireworks or sparklers: If the campsite allows them, these can be a fun way to spend the evening. We saw people enjoying handheld fireworks at night during our stay.

Actually, quite a lot of our camping equipment came from Daiso, which made preparing for our first camping trip much cheaper.

Swimming and Stargazing

 

There is also a beach near the campsite, so if you bring your own snorkeling equipment, you can enjoy the water without booking another activity. However, it is important to check the swimming season and conditions before going into the sea, especially outside the main summer period.

At night, we also tried stargazing because our trip happened to fall around the Perseid meteor shower.

Unfortunately, it was quite cloudy, so we could not see as much as we had hoped. However, Koganezaki becomes very dark at night, and being away from the lights of the city still made it a nice place to sit outside and look at the sky.

My Experience at Koganezaki

 

Overall, I really enjoyed our trip to Koganezaki. It was particularly memorable for me because I experienced several things for the first time. It was my first time diving in the ocean, as well as my first time camping.

There were definitely things we were not prepared for, especially the lack of food nearby, and getting there from Chiba took a long time. However, I also enjoyed how quiet the area was compared to the places we normally visit around Tokyo.

If you are interested in diving, snorkeling, or camping during summer in Japan, Koganezaki in Izu is worth considering. You do not necessarily need to be experienced, since there are rental equipment and lessons available, and it is also possible to travel there without a car.

Just make sure to prepare properly, check the transportation schedules, bring everything you need for the night, and most importantly, buy enough food before you arrive.

That is definitely one lesson we will remember the next time we go camping.

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